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the start
The first stirrings of a significant opposition movement against Zia’s regime arose in February of 1981. Eleven diverse political parties formed a coalition called Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD) to pressure Zia’s regime to hold elections and suspend martial law. -
a coalition of eleven
A coalition of eleven Pakistani political parties known as the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD) formed in 1983 to pressure the dictatorial regime of Muhammad Zia-ul Haq to hold elections and suspend martial law. The MRD, which remained mostly nonviolent, was strongest among supporters of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) in Sindh Province. Though it launched one of the most massive nonviolent movements in South Asia since the time of Gandhi, failure to expand beyond its southern s -
mrd
MRD activist demonstrating against President Zia-ul-Haq in 1985 in Punjab. -
color revolution
the Pakistani public has conducted a ‘color revolution’ of its own, in the teeth of opposition or skittishness in Washington, and managed to overturn a military dictatorship that had been backed to the hilt by Bush-Cheney, restoring parliamentary governance. -
landmark event
This past weekend’s national election in Pakistan marked a landmark event in the country’s 66-year history. For the first time, an elected civilian government has completed a full five-year term and will hand over power to the newly elected government. Militant threats did not stop millions of Pakistanis from voting, with an unprecedented turnout of about 60 percent.
